--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is no such thing as maternal…" description: "\"“There is no such thing as maternal \"instinct\": the word does not in any case apply to the human species. The mother's attitude is defined by her total..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04f/simone-de-beauvoir-407_maternal_there-is-no-such-thing-as-maternal-insti_2781210.jpg" --- # There is no such thing as maternal "instinct": the word… ![“There is no such thing as maternal "instinct": the word does not in any case apply to the human species. The mother's attitude is defined by her total situation and by the way she accepts it.” quote by Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04f/simone-de-beauvoir-407_maternal_there-is-no-such-thing-as-maternal-insti_2781210.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04f/simone-de-beauvoir-407_maternal_there-is-no-such-thing-as-maternal-insti_2781210.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04f/simone-de-beauvoir-407_maternal_there-is-no-such-thing-as-maternal-insti_2781210.jpg) > ““There is no such thing as maternal "instinct": the word does not in any case apply to the human species. The mother's attitude is defined by her total situation and by the way she accepts it.”” [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Maternal instinct is not universal; motherhood is shaped by context and acceptance. **In simple terms:** Motherhood depends on situation, not instinct. Key Takeaway Recognize cultural influences on parenting. Themes gender roles biology social constructs Mood thoughtful analytical Type philosophical feminist When to use this quote - family planning - social policy - psychology Key Concepts maternal behavior situational ethics Questions to Reflect On - How does culture shape parenting? - Can we separate biology from context? A Different Perspective Biological factors also play a role. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Maternal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maternal/) [Maternal instinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maternal-instinct/) [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) ## Related quotes > [“It must be added that the men who most respect embryonic life are the same ones who do not hesitate to send adults to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/it-must-be-added-that-the-men-who-most-respect-embryonic-life-are-the/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“Forced motherhood results in bringing miserable children into the world, children whose parents cannot feed them, who become victims of public assistance or "martyr…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/forced-motherhood-results-in-bringing-miserable-children-into-the/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“As Merleau Ponty very justly puts it, man is not a natural species: he's a historical idea. Woman is not a completed reality, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/as-merleau-ponty-very-justly-puts-it-man-is-not-a-natural-species-he/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“I hadn't known Chancel very well, but ten days earlier I had seen him laughing with the others around the Christmas tree. Maybe Robert…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/i-hadn-t-known-chancel-very-well-but-ten-days-earlier-i-had-seen-him/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“Las mujeres no son solidarias como sexo: ante todo están ligadas a su clase; los intereses de las burguesas y los de las mujeres…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/las-mujeres-no-son-solidarias-como-sexo-ante-todo-est-n-ligadas-a-su/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Being a mother is an attitude, not a biological relation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/being-a-mother-is-an-attitude-not-a-biological-relation/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [“Of course Sartre and Beauvoir were not alone in being seduced by Communism. Many of the Auden generation, on both sides of the Channel,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carole-seymour-jones/of-course-sartre-and-beauvoir-were-not-alone-in-being-seduced-by/) Carole Seymour-Jones > [“When I was writing Green Girl,I was reading Simone de Beauvoir’s The Second Sex, and she’s very dismissive of the young girl. She writes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-zambreno/when-i-was-writing-green-girl-i-was-reading-simone-de-beauvoir-s-the/) [Kate Zambreno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-zambreno/) > [“Whether you call it Attachment Parenting, natural parenting, or simple maternal instincts, this false "return" to traditional parenting is just a more explicit and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-valenti/whether-you-call-it-attachment-parenting-natural-parenting-or-simple/) [Jessica Valenti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-valenti/) > [If you believe in the maternal instinct and fail at mother love, you fail as a woman. It is a controlling idea that holds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-friday/if-you-believe-in-the-maternal-instinct-and-fail-at-mother-love-you/) [Nancy Friday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-friday/) > [I would say that the woman's ability to multi-task and to be maternal in instinct, it fosters a different approach to the character that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omari-hardwick/i-would-say-that-the-woman-s-ability-to-multi-task-and-to-be-maternal/) [Omari Hardwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omari-hardwick/) > [When WOMEN got the right to vote is when it all went downhill. Because that’s when votes started being cast with emotion and uh,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/when-women-got-the-right-to-vote-is-when-it-all-went-downhill-because/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [I think maternal instinct is a male construct that has been used for centuries to keep women in their place, at home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leila-slimani/i-think-maternal-instinct-is-a-male-construct-that-has-been-used-for/) [Leila Slimani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leila-slimani/) > [“My God, she's good-looking!" said Mr. Sandwood, who was just over thirty. "Good-looking!" cried Mr. Hedrick contemptuously, "she always looks as if she wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/my-god-she-s-good-looking-said-mr-sandwood-who-was-just-over-thirty/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [One of the great issues in biology is the origin of altruism - of why you would do something for someone else that could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-rossellini/one-of-the-great-issues-in-biology-is-the-origin-of-altruism-of-why/) [Isabella Rossellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-rossellini/) ## More by Simone de Beauvoir > [The time that one gains cannot be accumulated in a storehouse; it is contradictory to want to save up existence, which, the fact is,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/the-time-that-one-gains-cannot-be-accumulated-in-a-storehouse-it-is/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [One is not born a genius, one becomes a genius; and the feminine situation has up to the present rendered this becoming practically impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/one-is-not-born-a-genius-one-becomes-a-genius-and-the-feminine/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Many things would be changed for Americans if they would only admit that there is ill-luck in this world and that misfortune is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/many-things-would-be-changed-for-americans-if-they-would-only-admit/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“You said something very true the other day: that for us, nudity begins with the face.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/you-said-something-very-true-the-other-day-that-for-us-nudity-begins/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“Ženama se ne rađamo, nego postajemo”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/enama-se-ne-ra-amo-nego-postajemo/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Life is occupied in both perpetuating itself and in surpassing itself; if all it does is maintain itself, then living is only not dying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/life-is-occupied-in-both-perpetuating-itself-and-in-surpassing-itself/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Fathers never have exactly the daughters they want because they invent a notion a them that the daughters have to conform to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/fathers-never-have-exactly-the-daughters-they-want-because-they/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [However gifted an individual is at the outset, if his or her talents cannot be developed because of his or her social condition, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/however-gifted-an-individual-is-at-the-outset-if-his-or-her-talents/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [In fact, people seem to be tired of fiction now. There are so many other ways of exploring humanity - by ethnology, psychoanalysis, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/in-fact-people-seem-to-be-tired-of-fiction-now-there-are-so-many/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [Feminism is one way of attacking society as it now exists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/feminism-is-one-way-of-attacking-society-as-it-now-exists/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“Magari mi troverai ridicola, ma mi disprezzerei se non osassi esserlo mai”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/magari-mi-troverai-ridicola-ma-mi-disprezzerei-se-non-osassi-esserlo/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [from one minute to the next the present is merely an honorary past. It must be filled unceasingly anew to dissemble the curse it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/from-one-minute-to-the-next-the-present-is-merely-an-honorary-past-it/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [I am awfully greedy; I want everything from life. I want to be a woman and to be a man, to have many friends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/i-am-awfully-greedy-i-want-everything-from-life-i-want-to-be-a-woman/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“I enjoyed my exhaustion, though; I liked overdoing things”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/i-enjoyed-my-exhaustion-though-i-liked-overdoing-things/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“But I miss you to the point of anguish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/but-i-miss-you-to-the-point-of-anguish/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) [Explore all 488 Simone de Beauvoir quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) ## More Maternal quotes > [Miami Beach - that's where I grew up, in a middle-class Jewish family led by my maternal grandfather. Me, my great-grandmother - a Holocaust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brett-ratner/miami-beach-that-s-where-i-grew-up-in-a-middle-class-jewish-family/) [Brett Ratner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brett-ratner/) > [O maternal earth which rocks the fallen leaf to sleep!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-lee-masters/o-maternal-earth-which-rocks-the-fallen-leaf-to-sleep/) [Edgar Lee Masters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-lee-masters/) > [One of the great issues in biology is the origin of altruism - of why you would do something for someone else that could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-rossellini/one-of-the-great-issues-in-biology-is-the-origin-of-altruism-of-why/) [Isabella Rossellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-rossellini/) > [Young women who live in areas with high maternal mortality change their behavior less in response to HIV than young women who live in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-oster/young-women-who-live-in-areas-with-high-maternal-mortality-change/) [Emily Oster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-oster/) > [I have connected with my family more because I have made a group in which I have added all my family members from my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-khan/i-have-connected-with-my-family-more-because-i-have-made-a-group-in/) [Sara Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-khan/) > [Maternal health remains a staggering challenge, particularly in the developing world. Globally, a woman dies from complications in childbirth every minute.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-capshaw/maternal-health-remains-a-staggering-challenge-particularly-in-the/) [Jessica Capshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-capshaw/) > [Midwives and doctors play a crucial role preventing unnecessary maternal deaths. They educate women about nutrition, health and family planning. And they step in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liya-kebede/midwives-and-doctors-play-a-crucial-role-preventing-unnecessary/) [Liya Kebede](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liya-kebede/) > [I think maternal instinct is a male construct that has been used for centuries to keep women in their place, at home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leila-slimani/i-think-maternal-instinct-is-a-male-construct-that-has-been-used-for/) [Leila Slimani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leila-slimani/) > [My maternal grandmother, Rose, was as tough as an old boot - she knew her own mind. She was the first person I lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hadley/my-maternal-grandmother-rose-was-as-tough-as-an-old-boot-she-knew-her/) [Tony Hadley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hadley/) > [There is a tension in relationships between wanting to return to the womb, but also wanting to be free. Because sometimes the woman's attentions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-fiennes/there-is-a-tension-in-relationships-between-wanting-to-return-to-the/) [Ralph Fiennes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-fiennes/) > [No-one believes me when I talk about this, but I'm really maternal... I worry that because I've always wanted kids so much, as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-fox/no-one-believes-me-when-i-talk-about-this-but-i-m-really-maternal-i/) [Megan Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-fox/) > [Mum is withdrawn and very shy. I don't see her as a friend, like I do my dad. He's active and bouncy. She's maternal,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chloe-madeley/mum-is-withdrawn-and-very-shy-i-don-t-see-her-as-a-friend-like-i-do/) [Chloe Madeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chloe-madeley/) > [“I became a mother before becoming sick, but i never expected sickness to take away my independent mothering, so i plant trees to sooth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikki-rowe/i-became-a-mother-before-becoming-sick-but-i-never-expected-sickness/) [Nikki rowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikki-rowe/) > [I come from a family of linguists. My maternal grandparents have been authors and translators.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ishaan-khatter/i-come-from-a-family-of-linguists-my-maternal-grandparents-have-been/) [Ishaan Khatter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ishaan-khatter/) > [“Suddenly, it occurred to me that my feelings towards the little man were distinctly maternal. Good God, I thought, how utterly revolting, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-r-king/suddenly-it-occurred-to-me-that-my-feelings-towards-the-little-man/) [Laurie R. King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-r-king/) [Browse all 93 Maternal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/maternal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“There is no such thing as maternal \"instinct\": the word does not in any case apply to the human species. 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